US Senator Graham offers alternative to Ukraine's accession to NATO

The US Senate is considering the idea of providing Ukraine with a scheme for rapid accession to NATO as a security guarantee in the event of a new Russian attack.

Source: Senator Lindsey Graham (Republican Party), who spoke with President Zelenskyy during a public conversation at the Munich Security Conference

Details: Graham stated that Ukraine's accession to NATO does not seem to be a realistic option – glossing over the fact that the United States opposes the accession, he only added that there are those in NATO who do not want to see Ukraine there. However, in searching for a scheme to guarantee Ukraine's security, the senator considers it inappropriate to reject the NATO lever.

Quote: "I've got an idea, comes from The Art of the Deal [Trump’s book – ed.]. If we can't agree they should be in NATO like right now, can we agree that if there's ever another Invasion, the moment they invade, they go into NATO? Let Putin put him in NATO if he wants to."

Details: In response to a question from the audience, he added that he was aware that such a scenario would lead to military action.

Quote: "I think we let Putin know that if he ever does this again, they're [Ukraine – ed.] going into NATO really quick. And if he invades again, they go into NATO that means we all fight [to defend Ukraine]."

Details: During the panel discussion, he repeated this idea again, demonstrating that he considered the proposal serious.

His colleague, Senator Jeanne Shaheen (Democrat), said she agreed with her colleague but did not go into detail about the proposal, only noting that they cannot take NATO off the table. Zelenskyy did not comment on the idea.

Notably, the current NATO enlargement scheme does not provide for a guaranteed quick accession, as the parliaments of all allied states must vote in favour of the new member.

Background:

• In a Munich discussion, Zelenskyy criticised the United States, which "never saw [Ukraine] in NATO".
• Zelenskyy said that Ukraine is ready to discuss all aspects of a future peace with the US, including its NATO membership, but it must set red lines.

Support UP or become our patron!